Besides recently discussing the recent escalation of tensions on the peninsula USFK Commander Walter Sharp has also made a major announce in regards to the future command and control of the allied Air Forces in Korea:

A Korea-U.S. Combined Air Force Command will be set up in Osan, General Walter Sharp, commander of the U.S. Forces Korea, said Wednesday. In a speech at the 2009 Korean-American Association general meeting, Sharp said the combined air force command will provide the air force capability needed to deal immediately with an attack.

When Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command is dissolved upon transfer to Korea of operational control of the Korean troops, an operational center with weaker leadership than the CFC will be set up, but retired brass have expressed fear that that would weaken the country’s ability to respond to an emergency.

The Osan Air Base is home to the Pacific Air Forces’ 51st Fighter Wing and headquarters of the Seventh Air Force. A formula to change the post to a combined air force command is now under study. It will probably be headed by the Seventh Air Force commander, a lieutenant general. The rotating deployment last month of 12 F-22 fighters to a U.S. base in Japan and the replacement of the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk with nuclear-powered aircraft carrier George Washington are steps designed to support the Korea’s defense, Sharp claimed.

A plan is also underway to create a combined Korea-U.S. intelligence group, according to a government source. Cha Du-hyeon, a researcher at the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses, said, “Because support from the U.S. air force’s powerful combat capability is essential during the initial phase of a war, the need to supplement air force and intelligence has been on the cards since the Roh Moo-hyun administration. Sharp’s remarks reflect those views.”

Beginning in 2012, South Korea and the U.S. will have a jointly developed operational plan, now in draft form, Sharp said. The plan will be rehearsed in combined training for three years, and revised and supplemented if necessary.  [Chosun Ilbo]